Publications - Depression

Facebook Use Leads to Depression? No, Says Study, by ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily , Jul 9 2012.

“A study of university students is the first evidence to refute the supposed link between depression and the amount of time spent on Facebook and other social-media sites. ”

Phone-Based Psychotherapy Helps Depression, at Least in the Short Term, by Alice Park, Time Magazine, Jun 6 2012.

“Psychotherapy is one of the more effective ways to treat depression, but there's a hurdle: getting people to seek out and stick with care. A new study suggests that for some patients, receiving therapy by telephone, instead of face-to-face on the therapist's couch, could be a solution. ”

Early Puberty Linked to Depression, by Traci Pedersen, Psych Central , Jun 4 2012.

“Going through early puberty puts a child at greater risk for anxiety and depression later in adolescence, according to researchers at the University of Melbourne. ”

Parents' Depression Linked to Problems in Children, by Perri Klass, New York Times , May 7 2012.

“A parent's depression, it turns out, can be linked to all kinds of problems, even in the lives of older children. ”

With Disruptive Kids, MDs Should Assess for Early Mental Illness, by Rick Nauert, Psych Central, Apr 30 2012.

“Mental illnesses are the number 1 cause of medical disability in youths ages 15 and older in the United States and Canada, according to the World Health Organization. And mental health researchers are reaching out to pediatricians to improve early detection of mental disorders. ”

Post-Prozac Nation, by Siddhartha Mukherjee, New York Times , Apr 19 2012.

“In 1988, a year after the Food and Drug Administration approved Prozac, 2,469,000 prescriptions for it were dispensed in America. By 2002, that number had risen to 33,320,000. By 2008, antidepressants were the third-most-common prescription drug taken in America. Fast forward to 2012 and the same antidepressants that inspired such enthusiasm have become the new villains of modern psychopharmacology - overhyped, overprescribed chemicals, symptomatic of a pill-happy culture searching for quick fixes for complex mental problems. ”

Hazards: Mild Sleep Disorders Tied to Depression, by Nicholas Bakalar, New York Times , Apr 2 2012.

“Snorting and stopping breathing during sleep are associated with depression, even in people whose symptoms do not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea, a new study has found. ”

Mental health leaders call for new drug treatments for depression schizophrenia, by Traci Pedersen, Mar 17 2012.

“There is a serious lack of new drug treatments for mental health disorders, such as depression and schizophrenia, say leading international academics, who are currently advocating for new approaches to drug development for mental health disorders. ”

Teen Health Linked to Teen Happiness, by Rick Nauert, Psych Central , Mar 5 2012.

“A new UK study suggests teenagers are not as invincible as they might think when it comes to health, and that an unhealthy lifestyle is linked to unhappiness. ”

Study: Migraines May Raise the Risk of Depression in Women, by Alexandra Sifferlin, Time Magazine , Feb 23 2012.

“As if having migraine headaches weren't enough of a burden, a new study finds that women with migraines are also more likely to develop depression - about 40% more likely than women who have no history of the headaches. ”

Trying to Find a Cry of Desperation Amid the Facebook Drama, by Jan Hoffman, New York Times , Feb 23 2012.

“Specialists in adolescent medicine and mental health experts say that dark postings should not be hastily dismissed because they can serve as signs of depression and an early warning system for timely intervention. Whether therapists should engage with patients over Facebook, however, remains a matter of debate. ”

School Absenteeism, Mental Health Problems Linked, by Janice Wood, Psych Central , Dec 25 2011.

“Students who miss a lot of school often have symptoms of psychiatric disorders, according to a new study. ”

Prescriptions for Antidepressants Increasing among Individuals with no Psychiatric Diagnosis, by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Aug 4 2011.

“According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 2005-2008 nearly 8.9 percent of the U.S. population had at least one prescription in this drug class during any given month. A new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health examines national trends in antidepressant prescribing and finds much of this growth was driven by a substantial increase in antidepressant prescriptions by non-psychiatrist providers without any accompanying psychiatric diagnosis. ”

Timely Treatment for Depression Hard to Get Even for the Insured, by Maia Szalavitz, Time Magazine , Jul 21 2011.

“Massachusetts requires health insurance for all, is second in the nation in the number of doctors per capita, and mandates equal coverage for mental and physical illnesses. Yet when researchers there posed as well-insured patients seeking treatment for depression, only 6% of calls to mental health facilities resulted in an appointment within two weeks, according to a new study. ”

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is seen as effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, by Jan Brogan, Boston Globe , Jul 11 2011.

“Once highly controversial, EMDR has made gains in acceptance. In 2004, both the American Psychiatric Association and the Department of Defense recommended it as an effective treatment for PTSD. In May, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services, recognized EMDR as an evidence-based treatment for depression and anxiety as well as for PTSD. ”